Canada 911 Ride Foundation to hold Ontario ride in August

The Canada 911 Ride Foundation has announced its annual three-day Ontario Ride, which will take place over the weekend of Aug. 23-25.

The police-escorted motorcycle ride raises funds to honour the legacies of emergency first responders who have died in the line of duty.

“We achieve this by commemorating their service through the placement of Automated External Defibrillator (AED) devices in their name, reintegrating their life-saving legacy into the community,” stated the organization in a press release. “Additionally, we offer educational support to the children of these heroes and collaborate with the Mikey Network to facilitate the placement of public access AEDs.”

Last year’s ride honoured five Ontario police officers who died in the line of duty (Toronto Police Service Cst. Andrew Hong, OPP Cst. Greg Pierzchala, South Simcoe Police Service Constables Morgan Russell and Devon Northrup, and York Regional Police Cst. Travis Gillespie). This year’s ride will honour OPP Sgt. Eric Mueller, who died in the line of duty on May 11, 2023. “His commitment and bravery will be remembered and celebrated throughout the event,” said the foundation.

The ride will start on Friday, Aug. 23, at Classy Chassis Motorcycle in Lakefield, Ont., and will conclude on Sunday, Aug. 25, at the York Regional Police Association building in Aurora. A banquet and formal ceremonies will take place on Aug. 24 at the Nottawasaga Inn Resort & Conference Centre in Alliston.

Last year, the ride introduced a third optional riding day on the Friday preceding the main event. This extra day, named Honger’s Rolling Thunder, pays tribute to Toronto Police Constable Andrew Hong, who lost his life while on duty on Sept. 12, 2022.

The ride has been held annually since 2006 and has raised more than $1,000,000.